The Auburn men's basketball team played two exhibition games in the Bahamas as part of the Bahamas Basketball Federation Summer of Thunder Tournament in early August.
The tournament attracted 12 NCAA Division I schools, including Ole Miss, Maryland and Bradley University.
The trip was made possible after the NCAA allowed D-I teams to play in a foreign country one time every four years.
This allowed coach Tony Barbee's Tigers to get some competitive practice in preparation for the upcoming season.
Barbee spoke about the Tigers work ethic over the summer.
"These guys have had a very productive summer and they have worked their tails off in the weight room," Barbee said.
The trip and exhibition games were important to the development of the team, according to Barbee.
"Ten extra days of practice are going to be invaluable as we look ahead to the real season," Barbee said.
The Tigers squared off in their first game against the Real Deal Shockers on Aug. 6, winning 99-63. The Shockers are a member of the New Providence Basketball Association, which is a branch of the BBF.
Auburn jumped out to a huge lead, leading 63-31 at halftime, and never looked back.
The Tigers were hot on the perimeter, with junior small forward Chris Griffin knocking down six three-pointers in the game. The transfer from Wabash Valley Community College and former Rutgers commit was the No. 14 JUCO player in America before signing with the Tigers.
"Chris Griffin is a guy that really can shoot the ball from range," Barbee said. "He can really space the floor, if you leave him open it's pretty much a layup."
Senior guard Chris Denson led the Tigers in scoring with 24, with point guards Malcolm Canada and Tahj Shamsid-Deen adding 11 and nine, respectively.
"It was great playing other competition," Denson said. "We got to beat up on someone else instead of each other. We worked on a lot of things like defense, execution and it was good to get out there and play."
Last season, Denson averaged 8.7 points per game and looks to be one of the main leaders on the team this year.
When asked about Denson's game, Barbee responded by saying that Denson is a threat to score 20 on any given night.
The Tigers' second and final exhibition game came against the Bahamas All-Stars on Aug. 9 in Nassau. The Tigers again had an impressive game, winning 88-60.
Junior guard KT Harrell led the Tigers with 21 points.
Harrell, who was named the 2010 Gatorade Alabama Basketball Player of the Year at Montgomery's Brewbaker Technology Magnet High School, redshirted last year after transferring from the University of Virginia.
The Tigers also showed defensive prowess, with senior center Asauhn Dixon-Tatum getting nine rebounds.
The 7-footer averaged 3.3 rebounds per game last season after transferring from Chattahoochee Technical College. During the 2011-12 season at Chattahoochee Tech, Dixon-Tatum was 5th in the NJCAA D-I with 11.8 rebounds per game, while leading the conference with 5.4 blocks per game.
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